Is there a best-in laundry scent booster that offers 12 weeks of freshness? Whether you say you are using in-wash scent boosters, laundry fragrance beads, or in-wash crystals, most are comparing brands like Downy Unstopables. Downy Unstoppables is the wrong spelling. However, I’ll still share it), Purex Crystals, Gain Fireworks, and the like; you are seeking something to extend the fresh smell of your freshly cleaned laundry, but do any of them work?
I do so much laundry daily, with 5 of us in the house, 2 in sports, etc., that I want the clothes to smell fresh as long as possible, so while I am not an expert, I do have enough loads of laundry under my mom belt, that I think I can talk about what my experiences are to help you!
So, I ended up seeking out laundry scent booster products, and then I decided to share what I learned, so I wrote this article!
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Article About Fragrance Boosters For Laundry
At some point, you have noticed there are many different ways to extend that fresh smell of your laundry on the retailer’s shelves.
The products are referred to as laundry scent boosters*, or laundry fragrance boosters*, and there are many of them, right?
- First, we are going to learn the difference as much as we can between them so you can buy what you are looking for!
- we’ll take a look at the different forms the boosters for laundry come in
- Discuss why to use laundry scent boosters
- Discuss why not to use in-wash scent boosters.
- and list where you can buy the laundry crystals and boosters
Did You Know That Fragrance Boosters For Laundry Come In Different Forms?
It is a true statement that those great-smelling laundry scent boosters come in different forms, and here they are:
Each brand and its respective products offer its own advantages and disadvantages.
I’ve tried all forms, and I have my choices narrowed down to 2: booster crystals and booster beads.
In my opinion, I found the most success between these two products in enhancing and maintaining the smell of fresh laundry.
However, opinions differ, and there are a lot of products out there for that reason.
3 Reasons To Seek Out A Laundry Scent Booster (Crystals or Beads)
Let me start here, not every load of laundry you do needs a boost of Downy Unstopables or Gain Fireworks.
If you read the fine print, the time to use fragrance boosters for laundry is the time when you are storing a freshly laundered item for more than a week, not daily wear and use the stuff!
And that’s where you start to come into an expensive load of laundry because, let’s face facts, these laundry fragrance boosters are not cheap!
- Sports equipment stinks, so I throw everything I have at it to make that funky smell disappear!
- Blankets you use over and over (like on couches) deserve to have an extended clean fragrance
- Clothing I am packing away for a few months (shorts or pants) for the new season
Again, those are just a few reasons you might choose to use laundry fragrance boosters or laundry booster crystals.
When Would Using Laundry Fragrance Beads or Booster Crystals Not make sense?
For when would using laundry fragrance beads of booster crystals not make sense, I’ve compared Purex Crystals vs. Downy Unstopables and experimented over 24+ times doing such!
This particular topic is less about the booster type (crystal or bead) and more about why you would want to use them, as they are not the most economical purchase you will make!
Just as there are practical reasons to purchase and use booster crystals and beads, there are also times you may not want to use them.
Let’s say that you are washing ice hockey clothing from your boys to get the smell out of the clothes.
If they put the clothing back on and wear it to practice, you might want to use vinegar, fabric softener, and detergent and call it a day!
It would be impractical to use a booster on those since they are not being stored but instead used immediately.
Why Use The Fragrant Boosters For Laundry
Conversely, if you are at the end of a sports season, hockey, football, baseball, etc., and the team shirts won’t be needed, using a laundry fragrance would be a good idea.
Once you wash the clothing and the laundry beads or crystals work their magic, you can store them and not worry about that funky sports smell taking over the drawer or closet they are stored in!
Kids’ pajamas or jackets that are fire retardant can not be washed with fabric softener. But you can use fragrance boosters (beads or crystals). You do not have to worry about that. Rather you will have good-smelling items, and they will still be fire retardant.
I am just explaining how I decide when to use the booster crystals and beads and when not to!
Can I Use Booster Crystals And Beads in The Dryer?
The answer is a straight-up no. Don’t use fragrance boosters or any brand in your dryer!
Those beads, if you have ever touched them, have a wax-life feeling, a sheen to them, and that will go into your dryer, and what a mess (I can not confirm nor deny that one of my kids might have done this to my dryer)!
Allow me to share this as well: if you melt these bad boys in your dryer, cleaning is no easy task, and the laundry that they got dumped on needs to be rewashed, and some may be ruined (Again, I can’t confirm or deny that this might have happened in Casa Vento!)
The crystals in the dryer will leave an oil stain on your clothing, the same that has happened in my wash as well! (Learn more on that below)
Your dryer is meant for dryer sheets, dryer balls, and the like, not booster crystals and beads!
How Does A Laundry Scent Booster Work Exactly To Make Laundry Smell So Fragrant?
I am not a chemist, a biologist, or a science person, so my best guess is that the cold or hot water you use in your washer dissolves the laundry fragrance booster of choice, and since the clothing is in the water, it is exposed to this.
Your clothing material opens when wet and, therefore, accepts fragrance, just like when you add detergent.
Sounds good to me and that is enough of a science lesson, don’t you agree?
Hot Or Cold? Crystals Or Beads
So this is where I believe you separate the boys from the men or the beads from the crystals.
In my personal experience in my HE front load washer, I have issues with beads (Ustopables) on loads of cold.
They don’t always dissolve, and sometimes they stick to clothing and then end up in the dryer, which takes on a whole life of its own.
That is not to say that I haven’t used them in the cold, but they do not always 100% dissolved. I’ve even found them smashed into the clothing from the spinning at the end.
But the websites state that the beads can be used in cold or hot water and will dissolve, but using them as much as I do, I firmly dissent.
Laundry Fragrance Crystals Have Their Issues Too
Let’s be honest; the more you use a product, the more you learn about it and understand its good and bad points.
Crystals (Purex) can leave oily spots on clothing, and I’ll share my brief story with you!
However, I must tell you that the crystals have left stains or spots like oily stuff on my clothes from time to time and trust me, there is no getting it out. (read the reviews. More people are saying the same thing here)
I had a favorite tee shirt. It went right on the boob area, and it looked like I was nursing and leaked, so crystals are not always a slam dunk either.
Purex Crystals vs. Downy Unstopables 
If you want good-smelling clothes that stay that way for days after the laundry is done, both are kinds of the Lightening in a bottle you have been looking for: Downy Unstopables and Purex Crystals.
Downy Unstopables have become unreasonably overpriced for what they are.
However, Purex Crystals are also quite expensive anymore.
I am up and down with Purex Crystals as one person in our house seemingly becomes allergic and breaks into rashes or hives when I use Crystals.
It must be because of the fragrance residue on the crystals. I don’t wash the clothing for this person with the Purex Crystals EVER because of hundreds of dollars and doctors’ visits. We figured out it was contact dermatitis from the residue.
The Downy Unstopables don’t always dissolve, but they do smell good.
I believe it takes fewer Unstopables to get a nice scent than the Crystals but again this is my opinion.
After a lot of reasoning and figuring out why we need the boosters and why we don’t, I now pick and choose when to use them, as they are not required for every load.
I’ve found that the warehouse clubs are the best bang for your buck when buying Downy Unstopables.
I’ve never had oily stains left on my clothing from the Unstopables, just beads that didn’t all dissolve, but I prefer that over oil stains.
For those that don’t have allergic reactions to scents and residues, you’ll probably prefer the many scent offerings of the Purex Crystals, but more is not always better; it is just more!
So 2 strikes against Purex: oil residue and fragrance residue really have changed my mind over the years as to which brand wins in the Purex Crystals vs. Downy Unstopables challenge in my home.
While Downy Unstopables
Overall I think Downy Unspotables have won me over, but I am still not completely sold. We need these boosters as there are other ways to freshen clothing, again, IMO!
There is no clear winner between fragrance boosters for laundry.
There is no real winner here: booster crystals or beads.
You must choose which works for you, fits your budget, and smells best to your nose Purex Crystals vs Downy Unstopables.
Before I Sign Off: A Few Tips To Use the Beads or Booster Crystals
My boys play hockey, and anyone with any sports clothing knows these clothes smell bad, and there seems to be no cure.
Use a small organza sachet bag**, place crystals or beads in it, and tie it off. Do this again for the other skate, athletic shoe, athletic bag, etc.
The scent should work for about five weeks and not much beyond that!
Fresh Air When You Vaccum
For those of you that have a vacuum canister, drop a few in there so it can recirculate a fresh smell as you vacuum.
You might be surprised at how good the room smells when you exit.
*Do not leave the canister for Purex Crystals, Downy Unstopables, or any other product of the like open and near children or pets.
**If you make sachets filled with the products, they are NOT childproof, and these are toxic
This is my own personal comparison, done at my home; your trials may differ.
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